TA sells Australia's Honan Insurance to global strategic player
TA Associates has agreed to sell Honan Insurance Group, an Australia-based insurance broker specializing in corporate risk, employee benefits, and strata and real estate insurance, to Marsh McLennan.
The size of the transaction was not disclosed, but Bloomberg reported that Marsh – an insurance broker subsidiary of Marsh McLennan – would pay USD 448m for 100% of Honan. TA acquired an 80% interest in the company in 2020, deploying capital from its 13th global flagship fund, which wrote equity cheques of USD 75m-USD 500m for growth-oriented companies.
Founded in 1964 and headquartered in Melbourne, Honan serves more than 30,000 clients from offices in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Darwin, Newcastle, Auckland, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur. Headcount exceeds 400. When TA invested, there were around 200 staff across seven offices.
Honan’s core business is corporate risk advisory – covering industries from construction to biotech – and employee benefits, specifically health and wellbeing. The company is also the regional representative of the Worldwide Broker Network, one of the largest networks of independent insurance and risk advisors, which deepens its pool of resources and expertise.
Real estate insurance solutions are aimed at commercial and residential projects as well as at managers, landlords, and homeowners in Australia and New Zealand. This includes expertise in large residential buildings with strata title ownership.
Marsh said the acquisition of Honan would strengthen its coverage in Australia and New Zealand, notably in corporate risk and strata insurance. The Honan team, led by CEO Andrew Fluitsma, will report to Nick Harris, who heads up Marsh’s Pacific operations.
“This transaction is good news for both our clients and colleagues who will benefit from the combination of our experience with Marsh’s global resources and solutions. It is also significant recognition for the hard work and dedication of the entire Honan team, which has helped us create a valuable proposition for clients,” Fluitsma said in a statement.
“With the support of TA over the last three years, Honan has undergone a period of accelerated growth, completing several acquisitions and increasing revenue and profitability.”
TA is now deploying its 15th global fund, which closed earlier this year at the hard cap of USD 16.5bn after seven months in the market. The firm’s Asia Pacific portfolio has been weighted towards India and Australia in recent years.
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